Scores of research have been conducted around
the health benefits of eating fruits and vegetables. Obesity as well as other
chronic diseases have been addressed and here we list only a few
that support
the
PBH
initiative.
Chronic Disease Facts: Costs and Number of Americans
Affected
1) The number of Americans affected by diseases related in part to
poor fruit and vegetable intake is staggeringly high:
Seriously Overweight/Obese 1
129,250,000
High Blood Pressure 1
50,000,000
Diabetes 2
17,000,000
Coronary Heart Disease 1
12,900,000
Osteoporosis 3
10,000,000
Cancer 4
8,900,000
Stroke 1
4,700,000
(1) American Heart Association. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics – 2003
Update.
Dallas, TX: AHA, 2002.
(2) CDC/DHHS. Diabetes: Disabling, Deadly, and on the Rise, at-a-Glance 2002.
Atlanta: CDC, 2002.
(3) National Osteoporosis Foundation. Osteoporosis Disease Statistics: Fast Facts.
Accessed at on January 10, 2002.
(4) American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts and Figures 2003. Atlanta, GA: ACS,
2003.
2) Four out of the five leading causes of death are related in part to inadequate
fruit and vegetable intake:
Death in the U.S. - 2001
Heart Disease
699,697
Cancer
553,251
Stroke
163,601
Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
123,974
Accidents
97,707
Diabetes
71,252
Source: National Vital Statistics Reports 3/14/2003: 51(5)
As a Nation: National health care expenditures (in billions of dollars):
increased by 188%, from $696 billion to $1,310 billion between 1990 and 2000.
Another increase
from $1,310 billion to $1,907.30 billion (146%) is projected to occur between
the year 2000 and 2005.
As Individuals: Per capita health care costs increased 153% between 1990
and 2000, from $2,738 to $4,178 per person. Between now and 2005, costs are
expected
to climb to $6,525 per person, an increase of 156%.
Evidence is increasing that the rise in health care costs is not being totally
covered by employers – employee
pay is being cut to compensate
High Fruit
and Vegetable Intake is Associated with Reduced Risk of ‘Killer’ Diseases
In persons with diabetes, the highest level of risk reduction for coronary
heart disease (CHD) was found among persons eating eight servings or more of
fruits and vegetables per day (Joshipura et al, Ann Int Med 2001; 134:1106-1114)
.
The PREMIER study (an extension of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension
or DASH study) found that 8-10 daily servings of fruits and vegetables helped
to significantly reduce blood pressure and bodyweight, as part of a lifestyle
approach to blood pressure reduction (Appel et al, JAMA 2003; 289:2083-2093).
The Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals’ Follow-Up Study found
that intake of the highest amounts of fruits and vegetables (10.2 servings/day
in women and 9.2 servings per day in men) was found to reduce risk of stroke
in women and men by 26% and 39%, respectively (Joshipura et al, 1999; JAMA 282:12831289).
Eating 4 -6 servings of fruits and vegetables per day was found to lower
the
risk for esophageal cancer by 40-60%, compared to persons eating only 1 – 2 servings
per day (Terry et al, JNCI 2001; 93:525-533.).
In the Boyd Orr cohort, persons who consumed the most fruit during childhood
had the lowest risk for developing cancer as adults (Maynard et al, J Epidemiol
Community Health 2003; 57:218-225).
Vitamin, Mineral, and Antioxidant
Supplements Can’t
Do What Fruits and
Vegetables Can
Recent research estimates that half of American women are taking dietary
supplements (Neuhouser ML, J Nutr 2003; 133:1992S-1996S.). The U.S. Preventive
Services Task
Force on dietary supplements recently published the conclusions of their review
on the use of dietary supplements for prevention of cancer and heart disease.
Poor evidence was found for the association of the ability of supplements to
prevent either disease (Berg et al, Ann Int Med 2003; 139:51-55; Morris & Carson,
Ann Int Med 2003; 139:56-70).
Evidence of the Benefit of Fruits, Vegetables, and Diet in Reducing
the Need for Medication
A recent study found that a plant foods–based diet including fruits, vegetables,
and containing foods known to lower cholesterol (soy, whole grains, nuts) had
a dramatic effect on serum cholesterol. This diet group reduced LDL (‘bad’) cholesterol
by 28.6%, having about the same effect as drug (lovastatin) therapy, and reduced
C-reactive protein (CRP) levels (an independent marker of risk for cardiac events
such as heart attack) by nearly as much as drug treatment. Importantly, the diet
accomplished this without the side effects known to occur with drug treatment
(muscle aches, liver damage). (Jenkins DA et al, JAMA 2003; 290:502-510)
The Gap Between Fruit and Vegetable Recommendations, Actual Intake,
and Funding of Consumption Efforts in the US
1) Evidence from the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals
(CSFII, 1994-1998)
CSFII has revealed that only 38% of all individuals consumed the recommended
number of servings of vegetables, and only 23% consumed the recommended number
of fruit servings. A significant gap in the variety of fruit and vegetable
intake was also found, which does not allow for an optimal or even near-optimal
intake of antioxidant (and other) nutrients needed to protect against cancer,
heart disease, and other ‘killer’ diseases.
2) Evidence from PBH's "State of the Plate" Report
New research from PBH provides a more in-depth analysis of fruit and vegetable
intake than CSFII. The research, conducted by NPD Group, found that only 1
in 5 Americans (20%) gets 5 servings of fruits and vegetables in
each
day
(excluding
French
fries
and
chips).
Almost
TWO-THIRDS consume less than 4 servings per day. Total daily fruit and vegetable
servings equaled 3.6 servings (2.3 from vegetables, 1.3 from fruits) - on average
(considering ‘7’ as the average between the ‘5-7-9’ recommendation) people
ate on average only about half the fruits and vegetables recommended. No other
food commodity – especially
one with such importance to disease prevention - has a gap this large between
recommended and actual intake.
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